Female UK jazz musicians face sexual harassment and discrimination, says report
Women in the UK jazz scene face discrimination and sexual harassment according to a new report, from requests to “sex up” their album covers to tokenism, maternal discrimination and scepticism about their musical capabilities.
Keychanges at Cheltenham jazz festival, compiled by Dr Sarah Raine, presents findings from interviews with 10 anonymised female jazz musicians of a “notable level of success” who performed at the event in 2019.
Thirty per cent reported experiencing sexual harassment in their careers, while 90% said they had experienced gender-based discrimination, with the majority of respondents stating that they found the UK’s jazz scene – currently in the midst of a renaissance – to be male-dominated.